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The NSW ICAC raid of ALP’s headquarters in Sydney shows political donations are a main source of corruption, yet the Government’s proposed Commonwealth Integrity Commission (CIC) wouldn’t even be able to investigate, Greens spokesperson for democracy Senator Larissa Waters said.

“The Government has intentionally designed a body that will ensure political parties can’t be investigated for the millions of dollars in corporate donations they take from industries like mining, banking and gambling," Senator Waters said.

The Government has failed to budget for its Clayton’s Commonwealth Integrity Commission in MYEFO, proving the announcement was just smoke and mirrors, Greens spokesperson for democracy Senator Larissa Waters said.

Greens spokesperson for democracy Senator Larissa Waters said 10 years after the Greens first called for a federal anti-corruption body to oversee parliamentarians and the public service, the Morrison Government has finally got on board – but there’s so many catches.

“The Morrison Government’s proposed Commonwealth Integrity Commission is the ICAC you have when you’re not really having an ICAC. It’s the poor cousin of the state ICACs and basically a Clayton’s ICAC,” Senator Waters said.

I rise to speak on the Electoral Legislation Amendment (Electoral Funding and Disclosure Reform) Bill 2017. This is a very complicated bill and it has certainly had a very chequered history. It purports to restrict the influence of foreign money over our politics.

The Liberals continue to show contempt for the will of the Australian public when it comes to establishing a national anti-corruption body, Greens spokesperson for democracy, Queensland Senator, Larissa Waters said.

“Trust in public institutions has been trashed thanks to major parties representing their corporate donor mates, not the rest of us. Australians are overwhelmingly in favour of a national anti-corruption body yet the Liberals are blatantly ignoring them,” Senator Waters said.

Reforming political donations, ending corruption, and giving people a say in how Australian government works.

The Greens are committed to reforms that give people a greater say in how Australian government works. We want proportional representation in all parliaments so that voters’ diversity is better represented. The Greens are campaigning to strengthen the democratic values of our voting system, with the Senate voting reforms a key step that returned preferences back to the voter.

We are working to reform political donations and have Bills in parliament that will reduce the influence of the big end of town. We are also working to strengthen the federal lobbyist code of conduct so we know which industries are trying to influence our politicians. The Greens are committed to separating business interests from politics by introducing a national anti-corruption watchdog. We will continue to work to ensure that those who are marginalised and with little power have their voice heard and can genuinely participate in the political process.